Mind control
*Mr. Stupid NoHead *Baby Intelligence |era= |affiliation= }} Mind control is the act of navigating through the many layers of a person's mind and correctly interpreting one's findings. When cast successfully, the power places the victim completely under the caster's control, though a person with exceptional strength of will is capable of resisting it. A person who practices this art is known as a mind invader. Fobbles might call this "mind-reading," but practitioners disdain the term as naive. The opposite of mind control is mind resistance, which may be used to shield one's mind from the invasion and influence of a Mind invader. Description Apart from probing the mind, mind control also serves to control people as an extension. Effects Being subjected to mind control — when adequately cast — is painful when the mind is being probed. However, when it is used to control others, it is not an unpleasant experience, in fact, quite the opposite; the victim of mind control is placed in a calm, trance-like state in which all feeling of responsibility and anxiety is banished (drawing parallels to the real-world phenomenon of , which is also often portrayed in fiction — albeit inaccurately — of being capable of placing someone under the complete control of another by placing them in a theta state). However, when Sebiscuits Cardarphen was possessed, he believed that his mind control may not have been very strong, thus the sensation from casting a more powerful attack may be more intense than the known account. An adequately possessed being is placed under the caster's total control and may be directed to do anything the caster wishes, including crimes such as murder, political corruption, embezzlement, and even suicide. Also, whilst under the caster's control, the attack may also endow the victim with whatever skills that are required in order to complete the task at hand, such as increased strength or allowing them to fight far above their level. For example, when possessed, Andromeda was able to perform a series of "quite astonishing gymnastics" under the superpower that she would not normally be capable of. It is possible for someone who has been possessed to possess others as well, so long as they have the ability to do so. It is also possible that the Knight of Plague Sebastian Lestange possessed Fredrick Powell to possess other high-ranking members of the government in order to facilitate the overthrow of the President. When correctly deployed mind control is terminated — for whatever reason — the victims become themselves again, as happened after the final defeat of Mr. Stupid NoHead in the First Battle of the NoHead Base, when all of the people across the country who had been possessed by him were released from the power. Also, any pain that the mind control has negated by the pleasant sensation would return, along with any other pain that the victim suffered for the duration of the attack. Although it is possible to possess Secret Keepers to control them, it is impossible to use it to make them divulge the secret, as it must be done on the Keeper's free will. Dangers If possession is performed poorly, then the victim would have their mind addled, an example being Fobble Vice President Erick Charle. It seems the damage is long-lasting, as Charle was sent to NYC Hospital to recuperate and spent the rest of his life believing he was a goose. This is likely due to the fact that such strong powers may leave irreversible biological damage. Resistance Resisting mind control is possible, but requires great strength of will and character. Baby Intelligence, George Thames II and Whammo Fireball each learned to resist mind control after being subjected to its effects, though the latter two took quite a long time before building the said resistance. History It is unknown who invented the art of mind control and just when it was invented. It is safe to assume that the art has been around for a fairly long time, as Lady Xamera, a very skilled Mind invader, lived in the 11th century. Other mutants have used mind control on several different occasions as well. Annabeth Black used mind control on Bartholomew Gales while attempting to train him in Mind resistance in 2017. Mr. Stupid NoHead has used mind control extensively to enter the minds of those he wished to interrogate. It was even said that it was "the dark lord's pleasure to invade the mind". Due to the link between himself and Baby Intelligence, both can access each other's thoughts if NoHead does not block it off with mind resistance. Methods If a target is not skilled in Mind resistance, a Mind invader will be able to detect if the person is lying, as well as delve into their thoughts, emotions, and memories. Highly skilled Mind invaders can also influence a mind that they invade; for example, Hell Burnbottom temporarily possessed Lindsay Kellerman (which was extremely painful to Lindsay, to the point where she begged Master Intelligence to kill her, just to relieve her of the pain). The Gladiator, considered perhaps the most skilled Mind invader of his time, was able to send Lindsay incredibly realistic visions of Transylvania Quarters and the Grand Bomb. It is easier to perform mind control when the target and practitioners' eyes meet. Like Mind resistance, mind control is not regularly taught at Superhero School. Considering that it invades peoples' privacy, mind control is a legally restricted practice, just as the use of Turan is strictly regulated by the U.S. Government. Instances of possible possession Known Mind invaders Hell Burnbottom.jpg|Hell Burnbottom (possibly) Xamera.jpg|Lady Xamera Annabeth body.jpg|Annabeth Black Mr. Stupid NoHead.jpg|Mr. Stupid NoHead The Super Babies books rohb promostills 3.jpg|Baby Intelligence (indirectly) *Valarie Lethletera Behind the scenes Whilst Annabeth Black chides Bartholomew Gales for assuming that possession and mind-reading are the same, she does not elaborate on the differences at all (save for saying that mind control is much subtler and more complicated than that). In fact, she even states that it would be possible for an advanced Mind invader like Mr. Stupid NoHead to read another's mind. However, given all the canonical information one can work out a reasonable distinction between the two; mind-reading assumes that one is simply eavesdropping on the thoughts currently running through the head of another. Possession, however, appears to actually require the mutant to navigate and move through the various areas of the brain. Whilst it would therefore be theoretically possible then, for one to access the area controlling conscious thought (and hence "read another's mind") other areas of the brain are open to the Mind invader too, such as the area housing memory and the part of the mind controlling the voluntary muscles. This would fit with Black's description of the mind being a many layered thing, as well as Burnbottom's apparent ability to possess Lindsay Kellerman in this way and how Bartholomew is seen delving through Annabeth's memories using possession (As opposed to just hearing her current thoughts like a stream of consciousness). It would also support Annabeth's assertion that equating possession to mind-reading would be a fallacious, reductionist attitude towards such a skill. Ironically, in the first few chapters of , Sean suspected Annabeth was capable of reading minds (though Black says she does not care for the term "mind reading," considering it an oversimplification). Possible uses of mind control Hell Burnbottom may have been a Mind invader as he is known to have trained Brute Gunray and Mean King in mind resistance; presumably he had to be able to penetrate their minds with possession in order to teach them how to repel such an attack. However, it is also possible that he simply coached them on repelling mental assault whilst having someone else attempt possession on him during practice. He also hinted at this ability twice when Whammo Fireball spoke with him. Baby Intelligence was able to use his connection to Mr. Stupid NoHead to briefly invade the latter's mind to determine his location. However, it is unknown whether Baby Intelligence was using possession to accomplish this. If he was using mind control, he may have been using it in a very indirect approach. Behind the scenes The concepts of telepathy and mind control are often confused throughout the series, yet it can be assumed that mind invaders can read minds whilst also being another name for a telepath, thus having two definitions. Mind control is controlling people's thoughts, whereas telepathy is simply knowing what they are. Appearances * * * * * * * * * * In , Sean states that he gets the feeling Annabeth can read minds, when Annabeth is looking right at him, and when Annabeth knows things she wouldn't know unless Annabeth was reading Sean's mind. * See also *Mind invader *Mind resistance Notes and references Category:Mind control Category:Illegal powers Category:Mental powers